Hello everyone!
I'm a total bookworm and I love reading physical copies, but with a little one in tow, it's tough to find time for my hobby. That's where audiobooks come in – a lifesaver!
I've got most of the popular apps for listening to and reading books, and today I'm reviewing MTS's online library, 'Stroki'.
Since this review is going to be a bit lengthy, I'll break it down into sections:
📚 About the app;
📚 About the books and subscriptions;
📚 About the e-reader;
📚 My overall experience.
So, what exactly makes up 'Stroki'?
App Stroki (online library Stroki.mts.ru)xa0
App Stroki (online library Stroki.mts.ru)📖 ABOUT THE APP:
The app is super easy to find in both the Play Market and AppStore. Here's what it looks like in the store:
App Stroki (online library Stroki.mts.ru)It doesn't take up much space on your phone.
The app's features from the developer:
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)I downloaded the app and it looks like this.
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)Let's take a look inside:
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)
To start reading books, you'll need to sign up for an account. And the good news is, you don't have to be an MTS customer to do so. You can register using any mobile operator and get a code. I won't go into the details of registration - it's a breeze, even for a kid.Once you're all set with your registration, you'll have access to your profile. Here, you can find info on your subscriptions, learn more about the app, reach out to customer support, restrict adult content, and more.
App Library (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)App Library (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)One thing I love about this app is the variety of sections. There's a "Feed", "Search", and "Favorites" section. The "Feed" section is where you'll find books you can read and listen to. I'll dive deeper into that in the next part.
App Library (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)The "Search" section is pretty self-explanatory. It's got a ton of genres to choose from, so you can easily find what you're looking for. And let me tell you, there are a lot of genres to explore:
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)And finally, there's the 'Favorites' section. That's where you'll find the books you're currently reading or listening to, as well as the ones you've bookmarked to come back to later.
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)In this section, you'll find some interesting stats, like how many books you've read in a year or a month, how much time you've spent reading or listening, and other fun facts.
About Books and Subscriptions:
I want to dive deeper into the subscriptions. There are only three of them:
The basic one costs 399 rubles.The premium one costs 549 rubles.The ultimate one costs 799 rubles.
Stroki app (online library Stroki.mts.ru)There's also a main catalog (which requires a subscription) and a free one, but the free one is pretty limited – you won't find anything exciting besides classics. If you want to fully use the service, you'll need to get a subscription.Each subscription has its perks. When you sign up for the basic subscription, you get access to the main catalog of books and one free book from the premium catalog. The premium catalog is where you'll find new releases, bestsellers, and other popular books.. The premium subscription gets you two free books, and the ultimate one gets you three. I'll share my thoughts on the subscriptions in more detail below. For now, let's talk about the books.
First off, on the main page, you'll see a curated selection of books just for you. If you've used the service before, the AI will suggest some books based on your preferences. There are a ton of books to choose from, and the selection is actually pretty accurate.
Stroki app (online library Stroki.mts.ru)Further down the page, you'll see the bestsellers and new releases sections. I think it's pretty self-explanatory what you'll find there.
App Lines (Stroki.mts.ru online library)I was really excited to see the "Coming soon to Stroki" section, which lists books that are about to be added to the service, along with their release dates.
App Lines (Stroki.mts.ru online library)As I dug deeper, I found a ton of other sections to explore. For example, there's a "Popular" section and a "Now in Stroki" section. I was also impressed by the "Media" section, which features curated book collections based on specific criteria. And if you're an author, you can even publish your own book on Stroki - I didn't investigate the process, but it's great to see a section dedicated to self-publishing, called "We publish". Plus, there are tons of books organized by genre.
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library) Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library) Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)I was really impressed by the "Only in Stroki" section - it's packed with books you won't find anywhere else.
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)From my perspective, there are plenty of books to choose from, and you're bound to find something that suits your taste. About the Reader:
When you find a book you're interested in and open it up, one of the first things you'll notice is that many books come with an audiobook version. This is super convenient - whether you're a busy parent with a little one, or you're on-the-go and need something to listen to during your commute. It's a real game-changer.
Stroki.mts.ru App (Online Library)I was impressed to see that the app provides detailed information about the book, including its rating, publication year, and estimated reading time. To be honest, I didn't think much of it at first, but it's a nice touch.
Stroki.mts.ru App (Online Library)The app also gives you access to the author's information and a brief description of the book. You can even find out about the series, publisher, and genre, as well as options to purchase the book.
Stroki.mts.ru App (Online Library)The app does try to promote other MTS services, but it's done in a pretty subtle way - no pop-ups or annoying ads in sight. Stroki.mts.ru E-reader App (Online Library) Stroki.mts.ru E-reader App (Online Library)The e-reader itself is pretty user-friendly.
Stroki.mts.ru E-reader App (Online Library) Stroki.mts.ru E-reader App (Online Library)When you open a book, you'll see four tabs at the bottom:
Stroki.mts.ru E-reader App (Online Library)Table of Contents
Stroki.mts.ru E-reader App (Online Library)Settings
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library) Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library) Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)Highlights
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)BookmarksOne thing that really stands out is the sheer number of customization options in Stroki. It's a breeze to tailor the reader to your liking, and I was pleasantly surprised by the "formatting like a physical book" feature. Essentially, it tries to preserve the original illustrations and layout as much as possible. It's a small touch, but it makes a big difference in the reading experience. No more endless blocks of text.
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library) Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)Actually, if you've got a physical copy of a book and you're reading it digitally too, there's a nifty feature that lets you scan the physical text and open the corresponding page in the e-reader. This is a super handy feature that saves you from digging through a ton of text to find the right section or page.
Stroki App (Stroki.mts.ru Online Library)I've also had a chance to play around with the audiobook version, and you can customize the playback settings to your liking. The built-in player is pretty standard, just like the ones you'd find on other services.
Stroki.mts.ru Digital Library App My Takeaways from Using the App:
I'll start with the subscriptions. If you don't have a subscription, you won't find much of interest in the free catalog. The book selection is pretty slim and limited to classic literature, so you'll need to sign up for a subscription. The service does offer a trial period, which is just enough to read or listen to 1-2 books, but there are also plenty of promo codes available for a month, which can help you save on the subscription. Even with a subscription, though, it's not a guarantee that you'll have access to all the books. Sometimes you'll need to buy a new release. So, what's the point of a subscription? You could just take one book from the free catalog each month and then choose from what's available, but often there won't be much to choose from. In my opinion, it doesn't make sense to pay for a subscription and then buy more books. It's not cost-effective and just doesn't make sense.
Now, about the e-reader. I'm not a fan of the fact that there's no synchronization between audiobooks and text. In Litres, which is a similar service, this feature is available, and it's super convenient because you don't have to search for the fragments where you stopped reading. The app does it for you.
Despite these drawbacks, the service does have some advantages. There are a lot of books available, including new releases and exclusive titles that you won't find in other e-readers. Sometimes, these books are available for free as part of your subscription, which can really help with your budget.
I've gotta say, this e-reader is a real winner. I actually like it more than some other services I've used. The thing that really stands out is all the customization options - you can tailor it to your exact preferences.
One of the best features is that you can download books and read them offline, and then clear the cache in the app if you need to free up space.
There's also a kid-friendly mode and content restrictions for adults.
Stroki (online library Stroki.mts.ru)Here are the pros of this service:They've got a huge library of both new releases and classics:The e-reader is super user-friendly;Almost every book has an audiobook option;The search function is really easy to use;They've got exclusive titles that you won't find anywhere else;There's a kid-friendly mode and content restrictions for adults;You can even publish your own book.The cons are:
There's no syncing between the audiobook and text versions.When you sign up for a subscription, it doesn't guarantee that you'll get access to the books you want. Sometimes you still have to buy them separately.📖 TAKEAWAY:
Honestly, this service is a bit of a mixed bag: signing up for a subscription just to buy more books on top of it. I think it's not the best choice for people who read a lot, since you're not going to save any money that way. I'd recommend this service to people who enjoy reading but only get through one book a month, as long as you can snag a free subscription with some promo codes. Otherwise, I think it's a waste of money, since you can get the same books on services like Litres or MyBook without having to buy them again.
Maybe if the devs sort out the subscription issues, this could be one of the top services for reading and listening to books, but for now, it's just worth three stars.